Bill Wade, Star Quarterback Who Led Bears to the N.F.L. Title, Dies at 85

By The Associated Press

March 12, 2016

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Bill Wade was a No. 1 overall draft selection who played for 13 seasons in the N.F.L.CreditChicago Tribune/Chicago Tribune, via Associated Press

Bill Wade, a quarterback who was the National Football League’s No. 1 overall draft pick in 1952 and helped the Chicago Bears win the 1963 championship, died on Wednesday in Nashville. He was 85.

His death was confirmed by Sharon Wade Kinser, his daughter. She did not specify the cause.

A star quarterback at Vanderbilt University, Wade was selected by the Los Angeles Rams in the 1952 draft and, after serving two years in the Navy, played 13 seasons in the N.F.L. He threw for 124 touchdowns and 18,530 yards while playing for the Rams from 1954 to 1960 and for the Bears from 1961 to 1966. He also rushed for 1,334 yards and 24 touchdowns.

He threw for 2,301 yards and 15 touchdowns in the Bears’ 1963 championship season, and rushed for the Bears’ two touchdowns as they defeated the Giants, 14-10, in the title game.

Wade, the son of W. J. Wade, a captain of a Vanderbilt team that went 7-0-1 in 1921, played for Vanderbilt from 1949 to 1951. He was the Southeastern Conference player of the year and an Associated Press all-American second-team selection in his final season. He threw for 3,397 yards and 31 touchdowns during his college career.

As a junior at Vanderbilt in 1950, Wade threw 16 touchdown passes, which remained a program single-season record until Whit Taylor threw 22 in 1982.

William James Wade was born on Oct. 4, 1930, and grew up in Nashville. Complete information on his survivors was not immediately available.

His death came nine days after the death of Rudy Bukich, Wade’s backup on the 1963 Bears team. Bukich, who was also 85, played nine of 14 N.F.L. seasons with the Bears and was named All-Pro in 1965.

A version of this article appears in print on , on Page A28 of the New York edition with the headline: Bill Wade, 85, Quarterback Who Led Bears to ’63 Title. Order Reprints | Today’s Paper | Subscribe